Contrary to what you may have been told, Israel is not conducting ethnic cleansing or the genocidal destruction of the Palestinian Arabs in Judea and Samaria. How can this be proved? Just look at the population statistics for the number of Arabs in the Territories (2.4 million). Even allowing for claims of PA double-counting, this still represents at least a two-fold increase in the numbers of Arabs in 1967. So if Israel was trying to eliminate these Arabs, they’re doing a pretty poor job of it. In any case, the Palestinian Authority rules in the West Bank Territories, and the Hamas terrorist organization runs Gaza.

So where does Israel really get involved? Since July 2010 I’ve been collecting individual items of news where Israel’s path crosses with that of the Palestinian Arabs. There were plenty of reports of violence, but I was astonished to discover over 60 positive news stories that never appeared anywhere except in the Israeli press. In this issue, I have just selected the areas that Israel has helped the Palestinian Arabs in providing Medical assistance.

In June this year, Israeli paramedics reported that they deliver at least one Palestinian Arab baby every single month. The Israeli organization “Save A Child’s Heart” announced that their surgeons perform nearly half their operations on Palestinian Arab children, whose parents can hardly believe it.

In May, when a delegation of senior physicians and medical technicians from the Palestinian Authority arrived for a study program at the Carmel Medical Center in Haifa, they were so impressed that their leader stressed that “Peace must begin among us.” And that was while Israeli Arabs elsewhere were demonstrating for “Nakba” day. In the Wolfson Hospital, SACH surgeons were busy treating seven children from the Palestinian Authority.

Back in March, it was “fun in the snow” when Israeli soldiers took Palestinian Arab children cancer sufferers and their families for a day-out, playing on Mount Hermon.

In February, brain surgery saved the life of a Gaza toddler. Surgeons at Rambam hospital in Haifa removed a tumor the size of a large orange. The hospital had treated 200 Gazans in the previous six months alone. In the same month, Israeli soldiers successfully delivered a baby boy in a military ambulance when his Palestinian Arab mother went into labor in the Jordan valley. They then performed CPR to save his life.

In November, the IDF announced that 180,000 Arabs from the Palestinian-controlled territories had been treated at Israeli hospitals during the previous 12 months. One of those was a baby from Gaza who suffered from a life-threatening genetic disorder. An Israeli documentary about the baby entitled Precious Life was short-listed for an Academy award.

In October, I learned that there are 325 million Arabs in 22 Middle Eastern countries and other lands. Those statistics are available in many Internet sites, but none would have given me the following information. The first, and so far only, registry for potential unrelated Arab donors of bone marrow or stem cells – which have the ability to cure cancers and other serious disorders – is at Hadassah University Medical Center in Jerusalem’s Ein Kerem.

Back in July last year, when I started my mini-project, I read that Rami Hariziat Hassan, a 20-year-old Palestinian shepherd was saved by Border Police officers after being bitten by a viper on Sunday night. His friend Raja Talam Va’ada said ‘Suddenly, a snake bit him on the foot. We rushed to a local checkpoint and asked the soldiers for help. They really helped us,’ adding ‘He nearly died. He wasn’t breathing.’ We want to thank everyone – the border policemen and the hospital doctors,’ Va’ada said. ‘Well done to everyone.’ Before Hassan was released from the hospital, Border Police officers came to check on his condition and bring him candy (sweets).

Finally, here perhaps are some surprising statistics. Infant mortality in Gaza is 17.7 per thousand whereas in Turkey it is 24.8. Life expectancy figures are also better in Gaza. So maybe those so-called “aid flotillas” should be seeking a new destination.

Please look out for Part 2, which will highlight where Israel provides assistance to the Palestinian Arabs to improve their environment and economy.